The Apothecary

The Apothecary by Maile Meloy.  Her first book for young readers.  Wow.  She really knocked this one out of the park!  Whoo!  Loved it!  Would definitely like to see this as a Newbery contender for 2011.  Wouldn't be surprised if it took the golden seal!  

This book is set in the 1950s during the Red Scare and so beautifully takes the reader on a journey with Janie, the American, and Benjamin, the English, and Pip, the East Ender...through not only the streets and schools of London, but somehow throughout the world.  With the characters venturing out of England only briefly to Norway...but you feel as if you've been introduced to the entire world during this era of fear and post-war trauma.  Love the perspective of the characters from each ally nation and how Meloy leaves the end open for "possibilities" as the narrator so eloquently puts it.  But if this book were to be a stand alone that would be okay with me as well.  The ending satisfies.  This reader has adequate closure.  But it would be so great to know what happens next!  ;)

Happy Summer Reading Y'all!
This makes book #18 for me.
RC

Beautiful Disaster

Abby Abernathy is a good girl.  She's a Freshman at Eastern University where she's trying to make a fresh start from a secret past she'd rather not acknowledge.  Her roommate and BFF, America, has joined her on this journey for a "new" life and stands staunchly by her side.  However, as with all good books, there needs to be a plot twist and a conflict.  His name is Travis "Mad Dog" Maddox and he's an underground fighter who falls head over heels in love with Abby.  She'd rather not get mixed up with such a dangerous fella, but you know how good romances go, right?  She fights against it and tries not to think about him, but she's no match for this one!  If you want a quick, fun read, then try this one by Kindle author, Jamie McGuire.  It's not as good as some of the other more popular summer reads, but it would make an excellent beach read.  Easily picked up and put down.  (Although I read it in 2 days and wanted to do nothing else.  That's just me.)  

And...it's book #17 for me!  

Happy Summer Reading!
RC

One Thousand Gifts

Usually, when I finish a book I can't wait to blog about it and then dive right into the next. But with One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voscamp, I didn't want to rush the process. I took 5 days to read the book. Slowly contemplating each chapter. I wanted to absorb her thoughts and revelations about gratitude and grace. I posted several quotes she used onto my Facebook account to share her thoughts with my friends and I thought about those words each day. I hope they caused others to contemplate just how much gratitude they hold in their hearts for what God gives us each day. To see beauty in every day. Every small, precious moment. Even to see God's gift when the children are battling each other and when the day seems to drag on with endless, repetitive motions. The daily grind.
I'm thankful. For many things. Gifts. And I thank my friend, Carol, for buying me my very own copy of this book and sharing with me a mother's revelation. About grace.
I began counting 1,000 gifts this morning using the App for this book.  I love that you can record your gifts using text or pictures.

If you have the desire to know true grace...read this book.  And begin counting. 

Happy summer reading!  (And I think this is book #16 for me.)
RC

The Enchantress

The Enchantress, by Michael Scott, is book #6 in The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series.  It's my favorite young adult series, but as with other series the plot thickens and branches so much that I sometimes have to create a mental map of the characters and a few brief notes for myself.  That's what I'm sharing with you today.  I'm about 3/4 of the way through and for all you chess players out there, I'm getting to the "endgame" of the book.  I have a sneaky suspicion that I'm also getting to the endgame of the series.  I don't want to become so muddled down by sub-plots that I don't care about the ending.  Thus, my mental map.  I'm a visual learner and sometimes I can't "see" a plot until I break it down and write it down.  And of course, use pictures.  ;)

 As of page 290 (Chapter 43)

Virginia Dare--she doesn't look fierce, but she weilds much power!

 Plot 1- Sophie and Josh have traveled back in time to Danu Talis with Dr. John Dee and Virginia Dare.  Dee created a time portal using the 4 swords to help them escape the monsters of Alcatraz.  Sophie and Josh are with Osiris and Isis (their parents?) and are being presented as the rightful heirs of Danu Talis.  Only Bastet and Anubis have no idea their reign will be interrupted.  Aten has been rescued by Maretheyu and they plan to stop Anubis from becoming the ruler.  Bastet plans to throw Aten to the volcano.  Virginia Dare has been reintroduced to Maretheyu and they plan to thwart Bastet's plans as well.

The Morrigan

Plot 2- Nicholas and Perenelle have made their way onto Alcatraz where they will attempt to break the spell that binds the monsters together.  They have just discovered that the Morrigan is in charge.  They will soon (I predict) join Hel, Odin, Mars, Billy the Kid, Machiavelli and Black Hawk as they battle the Sphinx and the other monsters.

Niten

Plot 3- Niten and Prometheus have been fighting back the Drakon seed Spartoi on the Golden Gate Bridge.  

Scathach

Plot 4- Scathach, Prometheus (confusing!), Palamedes, Joan of Arc, Saint-Germain and Shakespeare are at the Yggdrasil with Hekate.  They plan to join the battle with the humani against the Elders (Osiris and Isis I believe).  

tsagaglalal- She Who Watches- The Witch of Endor

Plot 5-  Meanwhile, Aunt Agnes (aka She Who Watches or The Witch of Endor) has been working within a couple of time strands with her husband, Abraham the Mage to ensure that certain characters receive emerald tablets that show the future. 

Okay, now I think I've got it.  Whew!

Back to the book!  Oh!  And this will make #15 for me when I'm finished.

Happy Summer Reading!

And don't forget that sometimes you just have to stop...organize your thoughts...ask yourself and the author some questions...and maybe even Google something...and then you can go back to the book.  That's what readers do.

RC

Same Sun Here

One of our 2012-2013 Kentucky Bluegrass Award Nominees is a book co-authored by a Kentucky native...Silas House.  This beautiful book is a compilation of letters written between pen pals who live in very different locations and have many cultural differences.  Yet, they find a common bond and learn to appreciate not only each others' differences, but those around them.  Not only that, but they become best friends.  There are many teaching opportunities with this book and I look forward to students and teachers reading this book and sharing their thoughts with me. 

This is book #14 for me!
Happy Summer Reading!
RC

Snivel

I've just finished Snivel, the 5th installment in Dale E. Basye's Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go series.  Because I'm anxious to get back to the book I picked up today, I've found a great review by a fellow blogger...so read this if you're wondering why in the "heck" I read these books!  I feel the same way about them as the blogger, Lauren, does...Enjoy!

This makes book #13 for the year so far!
Happy Summer Reading!
RC

To recap: Marlo and Milton Fauster have died and gone to Heck, where bad children are stuck for eternity (or until they turn eighteen). They started off in Limbo in the first installment, and have since migrated down to Rapacia (Where the Greedy Kids Go), Blimpo (Where the Fat Kids Go), and Fibble (Where the Lying Kids Go), where they have wreaked havoc and righted wrongs (mostly(. The fifth book in the series finds them being transported to Snivel: Where the Whiny Kids Go. Snivel is a "bummer camp" run by Edgar Allen Poe and Vincent Van Gogh-- not two people anyone in their right mind would seek out for a good time. Naturally, the camp is totally miserable: the food is gross, the uniforms are ugly and uncomfortable, the weather is awful, and the activities are downright painful. On top of that, Milton and Marlo soon begin to suspect that the heads of the camp are up to something sinister...

In addition to the adventures of the Fauster siblings in Heck, Snivel chronicles several ongoing side-plots that have evolved throughout the series, and Basye does a really excellent job juggling them and interweaving them with the main narrative.

The series continues to be very amusing and highly entertaining. 4 out of 5 stars.

I'll almost certainly continue it to the conclusion. The next in the series, Precocia, will be released in February 2013.
 Taken from Lauren, "Underneath a Book" blog.  06-13-12

Books #11 and 12 finished!

Finished 11/22/63 by Stephen King while on vacation in Florida.  I would have preferred not to have to take that huge book onto the beach, but I refused to stop reading it...it was so amazing!  And although I enjoyed the "monster-free" King novel,  (I mean, technically, the "past" could be considered a character.) I learned so much American history about the south during the late 1950s and early 1960s.  Among lots of info about JFK's assassination, I learned that Jackie carrying these red roses, in the picture above, was significant.  Conspiracy theorists say that she received these red roses as a dark omen of the bloodshed to come on that fateful day in Dallas.  She had received yellow roses at every other stop that year.  Hmmm......

Let me conclude this part of the post by saying that I highly recommend this King novel.  I respect his story-telling craft and appreciated the research he obviously did in preparation for this novel.  Plus, the main character's love interest was a librarian!  Gotta love that!  

The movie is slated to be released in 2013.  I will definitely be attending!

 Now onto the next read...The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler.  Awesome murder mystery!  I'm so excited that LT loaned me this book.  It truly is "methadone for Steig Larsson fans"!  The plot twists and it turns and is so intriguing and mind-blowing that I had to pause after each chapter to absorb what I'd read!  We teach kids to do that all of the time...this book requires it!  Whew!  Would make an awesome movie!  You'll never guess the ending.  I shared most of it out loud with my husband as we drove home from Florida.   Finished it within 24 hours.  I've discovered that this husband/wife writing team plan an 8 book series featuring the detective Joona Linna.  It's already a Swedish television series.  The cast is pictured below.  The next book in the series, available to the US, is shown below as well.

Swedish television series actors for Joona Linna (left) and Erik Maria Bark (right).

Swedish actress who plays Erik's wife, Simone.

Book 2

Happy Summer Reading!
RC